Handkäse (ˈhantkɛːzə; literally: hand cheese) is a German regional sour milk cheese

Sour milk cheese

Sour milk cheese is a cheese that has been curdled by natural souring or by the addition of lactic acid bacteria, such as Cottage cheese. Sour milk cheese does not use rennet for coagulation....

 (similar to Harzer

Harzer

Harzer cheese is a German sour milk cheese made from low fat curd cheese, which contains only about one percent fat and originates in the Harz mountain region south of Braunschweig....

) and is a culinary speciality of Frankfurt, Offenbach am Main, Darmstadt, Langen and all other parts of South-Hessen. It gets its name from the traditional way of producing it: forming it with one's own hands.

It is a small, translucent, yellow cheese with a pungent aroma that many people find unpleasant. It is sometimes square, but more often round in shape.

Often served as an appetizer or as a snack with Apfelwein

Apfelwein

Cider in Germany is called Apfelwein , as the German language has not used the word cider. It is also regionally known as ebbelwoi, äppler, stöffsche, apfelmost , viez , and saurer most . It has an alcohol content of 5.5%–7% and a tart, sour taste...

 (aka Ebbelwoi), it is traditionally topped with chopped onions, locally known as "Handkäse mit Musik" (literally: hand cheese with music). It is usually eaten with caraway

Caraway

Caraway also known as meridian fennel, or Persian cumin is a biennial plant in the family Apiaceae, native to western Asia, Europe and Northern Africa....

 on it (as seen in the first picture). Since many people in Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 do not like this spice, in many areas it is served on the side. Some Hessians

Hesse

Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...

 say that it is a sign of the quality of the establishment when caraway is in a separate dispenser. As a sign of this many restaurants have, in addition to the salt and pepper, a little pot for caraway seeds.

An alternative theory of explaining "Musik" is that the vinegar and oil flasks were formerly given separately to the guests, and that when they hit each other, they made that sound. The "Musik" comes from the onions giving people gas.

Serving

The etiquette is not to use a fork while eating Handkäse. Usually a knife is used to cut off a piece, then the piece is to be stabbed by the knife and eaten directly from it. Alternately, it can be served with bread and butter: Some cheese goes on a piece of bread, accompanied by a bit of "Musik" on, (in both cases a knife is used) and then hands are used for eating the topped bread.

While Apfelwein

Apfelwein

Cider in Germany is called Apfelwein , as the German language has not used the word cider. It is also regionally known as ebbelwoi, äppler, stöffsche, apfelmost , viez , and saurer most . It has an alcohol content of 5.5%–7% and a tart, sour taste...

 is traditionally served with Handkäse, white wine is also accepted in some areas, like Rheinhessen

Rheinhessen

Rhenish Hesse refers to the part of the former Grand Duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt located west of the Rhine river and now part of Rhineland-Palatinate. It is a hilly countryside largely devoted to vineyards, therefore it is also called the "land of the thousand hills." Its larger towns include:...

.